CDC on the offensive to stamp out rodent virus

摘要

Three deaths linked to a rodent borne virus have the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention working to raise awareness about the zoonotic threat. Last May, the national public health agency concluded that four organ transplant recipients in New England had contracted lympho-cytic choriomeningitis virus from a common organ donor infected by a pet hamster. Three of the four patients died as a result. This is a new development for a virus believed to have been circulating in North America since theregion's colonization. As a result, the CDC is asking veterinary practitioners to inform the pet-owning public about the risks of owning hamsters, guinea pigs, gerbils, and other rodents.